Mental Health Advice With Stan: What You Can Do When Diagnosed With a Life Threatening Illness

By Stan Popovich

You go to your doctor for youryearly check-up and your doctor tells you that you have cancer or some otherdevastating illness. Suddenly, you become overwhelmed with fear and anxiety anddo not know what to do.

Here are six tips on what you cando to help ease your fears and anxieties when dealing with an illness.

Get All Of The Facts

The first step you need to do isto get all of the facts regarding your situation from your doctor. Do not rushto conclusions about your sickness. Get all the necessary information anddetails of your condition from the professionals before rushing to anyjudgements.

Determine Your Options

Once you get all of the detailsabout your illness, the next step is to go through your options with yourdoctor. Determine what you can do to get better. It is also recommended thatyou get a second and third opinion from other doctors. You do not want to relyon one person’s advice when making a life altering decision regarding yourhealth.

Stay Positive

 Remain positive and avoid negative thinking ifpossible. Read some self-help books that have a lot of positive affirmationsand statements. Reading these statements can help you to remain positive andreplace negative thoughts during your stressful times.

Pray

Prayer works for some individuals.There are many inspirational magazines and books on how people were helpedthrough the power of prayer. Read some articles to get an idea on how effectiveprayer can be in your life.

Join A Support Group

Try to find a local support groupthat helps people in your situation. There are many programs out there thatprovide assistance to you and your loved ones while you are in a midst of ahealth crisis. Many of these programs are free. Talk to your doctor or a mentalhealth counselor for more information.

Spend Time With Friends

Develop a network of friends andget involved in different social activities. Friends can reduce loneliness andthey can give encouragement regarding your situation. A person can alsovolunteer their time to help others. Volunteering can give you the perspectivethat there are people out there that are worse off than you.

Stan Popovich is a Penn State graduate and thenationally known anxiety  author of “A Layman’s Guide to Managing Fear”—an easy-to-read  overcoming anxiety book that’s helped thousands of peopleto confidently  manage their persistent fears and anxieties. Stan has over20 years of personal experience in dealing with fear and anxiety. For more freemental health advice visit Stan’s website at managingfear.com and read Stan’s articles and his blog. The above is not intendedto be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.Mr. Popovich is not a medical professional. Always seek the advice of yourphysician or other qualified health providers with any questions you may haveregarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice ordelay in seeking it because of something you have read here.

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